By Joseph B.A. Marzan
Iloilo City reached a milestone in its initiatives against the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on Nov 24, 2020 after no new cases were reported as of 12 pm.
Whether this development will mean easing the city’s community quarantine (CQ) status by Dec 1 remains to be seen.
The city posted decreasing trend in new cases since end-October to mid-November.
In a phone interview, COVID-19 Task Force spokesperson Jeck Conlu told Daily Guardian that the recent tests using the Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) were conducted in the past 24 to 48 hours.
Conlu attributed the decreasing trend in new cases to the city government’s interventions on the ground.
These include the localization of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in each barangay, increasing involvement of barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) officials as well as Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries.
“We’re looking at the interventions we have done in the barangays and the barangay-based efforts against COVID-19, like tapping parent-leaders and volunteers to educate in the communities where we should be starting the fight against the virus, involving 4Ps families and Sangguniang Kabataan officials, and establishing the EOC in each barangay,” Conlu said.
He likewise expressed enthusiasm at quicker test results as the city’s molecular laboratory started operating yesterday.
The laboratory was awarded its license to operate on Monday, Nov. 23, and is now testing up to 180 specimens, according to Conlu.
This would ease the turnaround time on tests which were previously done at the Western Visayas Medical Center in Mandurriao district, the designated Sub-National Laboratory for COVID-19 testing in the region.
Despite the encouraging numbers, Conlu said that they will wait for the national Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases to announce the city’s CQ status.
The city has been under General CQ since Oct. 1, 2020.
“Based on our meeting with the COVID-19 Team and Mayor Jerry Treñas, we have not discussed about the recommendation of shifting from GCQ to [Modified GCQ]. We’ll just see the status which will be given to us by the national IATF beginning on Dec. 1,” said Conlu.
He added, however, that there was a “big chance” that the city would revert to the more permissive MGCQ.
Prior to its current CQ status, Iloilo City was under MGCQ from June 1 to Sep. 24 before reverting to the stricter Modified Enhanced CQ, then back to MGCQ after only six days.
“We haven’t discussed appeals toward MGCQ either, but we will see. Based on our data here in the city, there is a huge chance that we will revert to MGCQ,” he said.
FOOT TRAFFIC
Conlu also acknowledged the increasing foot traffic in the city because of the downtrend in new COVID-19 cases, as well as the holiday season.
He said that the city government, in partnership with the city’s business establishments, have been closely monitoring the observance and promotion of minimum health protocols.
“Our foot traffic is indeed increasing here in the city, and we have called our mall operators and establishments to reiterate minimum health protocols. We have also been checking establishments if they have been following guidelines we have set, including face masks, face shields, barriers on tables, and alcohol at the entrances,” said Conlu.
He added that the city government is also currently equipping barangays and businesses with the capacity for its Uswag Tracer contact tracing system.
The Quick-Response (QR) code-based system was initially launched on Nov 16 but was temporarily halted after two days due to the influx of applications.
